Polygon Skyrockets, Surpassing Ethereum in 2023 User Surge!

Key Points:

• Polygon’s user base almost matches Ethereum’s in 2023, with 15.24 million users.
• Despite Ethereum’s lead in the second half, Polygon led in early 2023, grabbing 40% of its users in January alone.
• The surge in user acquisition across various blockchains peaked in May but gradually declined afterward.

Blockchain analytics firm Flipside reported that Polygon, a Layer-2 scaling network for Ethereum, nearly matched Ethereum in terms of user acquisition in 2023.

The data indicated that Polygon secured a commendable 15.24 million users throughout the year, coming within a striking 160,000 users of Ethereum’s 15.4 million.

Flipside defined an acquired user as an individual who conducted a minimum of two transactions on a specific blockchain, with at least one transaction occurring in the year 2023. Interestingly, Polygon took an early lead in the first half of the year, accounting for over 40% of its total acquired users in January alone. Despite a consistent decline in monthly user acquisition, Polygon continued to compare favorably with other networks.

Polygon’s Impressive 2023 User Surge

Ethereum, however, managed to surpass Polygon’s numbers during the second half of the year, securing its dominance in the crypto landscape. Bitcoin claimed the third position with 10.65 million acquired users, while Solana and Arbitrum completed the top five.

The eight tracked blockchains, including Optimism, Avalanche, and Base, collectively recorded a staggering 62 million acquired users. Flipside highlighted that user acquisition reached its peak in May before gradually declining. The firm attributed the surge in user numbers in March to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, speculating that the event might have eroded confidence in centralized entities, prompting a shift towards decentralized custody alternatives.

Base, a relatively new entrant, exhibited a strong start after its launch in August 2023. However, its user volume dwindled in the final months of the year, potentially influenced by renewed enthusiasm for more established chains with robust app ecosystems. Flipside suggested that the next bull run could rejuvenate Base’s user growth, particularly with Coinbase actively positioning itself as a gateway for new crypto users.